Tornado-like storm rips through Switzerland town, 1 dead; alert issued
A powerful tornado-like storm caused devastation in La Chaux-de-Fonds town of Switzerland, killing one person and injuring 15 others. The storm reportedly ripped through the town on Monday (local time), destroying homes, damaging communication lines, uprooting trees and knocking out trees, and disrupting traffic. While rescue and clean-up operations were underway, officials warned of more storms and urged people not to venture outside.
1 person killed after construction crane falls
Per MeteoSwiss, the Federal Office of Meteorology and Climatology, a "likely tornado" associated with a "rapidly developing thunderstorm cell" along the Jura mountains struck La Chaux-de-Fonds along the French border. It was coupled with wind gusts of 217km/h and suddenly strengthened as it reached the town. The storm caused the death of a person in his fifties following the collapse of a construction crane.
Watch: Aftermath of tornado-like storm
Neuchatel Police issues warning to people
Meanwhile, rescue and clean-up operations are ongoing, while the Neuchatel Police urged people not to put themselves at risk of falling tiles or trees. It also cautioned people that more storms were likely and asked them not to go outside.
Swiss meteorological service says town's topography intensified storm
A senior official of MeteoSwiss, Nicolas Borgognon, claimed that the landscape of the La Chaux-de-Fonds and its "American-style" grid structure has likely raised the intensity of the storm, channeling and compressing it between the buildings. He said the storm lasted for about five minutes, with a peak intensity of one-two minutes, adding that a detailed re-analysis will be done soon.
